[yasr_overall_rating]
A murder investigation of a slain businessman turns to clues found in an author’s book about an eerily similar crime. Based on the 2008 article “True Crimes – A Postmodern Murder Mystery” by David Grann.
Did I miss some previous entry in the franchise? I walked into this one with nowhere near enough information to piece everything together. I typically enjoy the brutal cinema of a cold murder mystery and the added element of a serious Jim Carrey (a man I haven’t personally seen on screen since, like, “Bruce Almighty”) makes it a juicy movie. Just listening to the movie and watching the plot unfold it feels like the screenplay was deftly crafted with an eye for language and mood. So, imagine my disappointment by the end of the movie when I felt confused, annoyed, and dulled for spending an hour and a half on this film.
“Dark Crimes” opens with arresting imagery crossing from murder-mystery into Hostel-esque themes a la Eli Roth. This ‘trip into insanity’ starts strong but never quite leaves the ground. By the time Jim Carrey utters his first words, we’re meant to be enveloped in a world that’s carried on without us. Dropped into the middle of an aging detective’s final case (and a chance for redemption), we’re forced to grasp at straws slowly, uncovering each character’s relationship to each other. The connections are tenuous at best so by the end of the movie, there’s little payoff.
Visually, the palette skews ice cold with hints of old ceiling tiles. Images the color of a pale green/blue bleed into the cold surfaces and set pieces in every scene. The costumes trend black with hints of faded olive and more black. A cold, uncaring Poland (I think) sits at the center of this story.
Where the movie succeeds is in its icy visuals and poetic voiceover devices. You can tell there’s material from the original book spliced in because they literally read sections of a novel out loud. Those sections are some of the best prose to listen to, filled with strong imagery and gloomy ruminations. The myopic observations quickly lean into its topics: rape, sex, avarice, murder and the novelty fades.
Other movies have tried “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” formula to lesser success (looking at you “The Snowman”). It’s a fine line to tread: ice cold gritty atmosphere with older men delving into humanity’s darkest edges. It’s a great concept on paper (as evidenced by the success of these novels) but in cinematic practice, it’s very difficult. This movie excels in ice and cold but sacrifices moody atmosphere to do so. In the end, all we’re left with is Jim Carrey staring moodily at different people for an hour or so and a little bit of a twist ending. I’ll be hard pressed to watch this movie again for any reason other than to justify my original critique. Beware “Dark Crimes” for it fails to deliver on shock, character substance, or morality but delivers on imagery and dark brooding.
Now available on Blu-ray & DVD
